1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of liquid fluid storing and dispensing apparatuses, and more particularly to manually operated, syringe-type or hypodermic apparatuses for containing and dispensing two or more viscous liquids or fluids at below surface or subcutaneous locations in industrial and health science uses.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are frequent applications in which it is necessary to store and to dispense quantities of two or more different viscous fluid materials in subsurface or subcutaneous locations. An example of such an application which requires the intermixing of two different liquids at the time of application, and requires separate storage prior to that time, might be the injection of two drugs which when mixed together will react in a synergistic or similar type effect. Another typical example of such an application would be the subsurface injection of an epoxy cement, where the disparate materials necessary for comprising the cement must be kept separately until they are brought to the precise location of cement use. Neither of the two component fluids is by itself hardenable and each may be separately stored for extended periods of time before use.
Frequently in injecting the separate liquids separately to the point of interaction, reaction or mixing, the hypodermic needle is inserted subcutaneously and one substance is injected beneath the surface. When the second material is applied via a second injection, it is not infrequent that the liquid or fluid is injected at a point removed from the point of injection of the first substance. Oftentimes, the separately capped disparate materials are separated from each other so that at the time of application they are not readily available from the same source. In addition, separate injection of the complementing fluids frequently results in the improper ratio or proportion of one fluid to the other in the final mix.
It is sometimes desired to have the fluids mixed in their correct proportion immediately prior to the injection at the point of use. At other times, it is desired to keep the fluids completely separate until they are carried to the actual point of use. In selected cases but not in other cases, it is desired to have the fluids turbulently mixed prior to injection at the point of use. It has long been sought to provide a simple, more convenient means for storing and for dispensing the component liquids of a particular mix while retaining the ability to choose at the last moment whether the components are to be conveyed to the point of use separately, or conveyed to the point of use after being merged, or conveyed to the point of use after being turbulently mixed.